Mapledurham Playing Fields trustees agreed to give further consideration to a bid by the Education Funding Agency to acquire a piece of the land to build a new primary school.

The Heights Free School sub-committee - acting as trustees for the charitable trust - agreed yesterday, Tuesday, July 12, to “consider” the EFA offer.

The offer is £1.36 million of which just over £30,000 is for 1.23 acres of land and the rest is for the charity to use for the furtherance of its charitable objectives.

The sub-committee set up solely to act as trustees for the Mapledurham Playing Fields charity had two options - either to reject the EFA offer or to agree to consider it and seek independent legal and property advice in relation to the proposal.

The Reading Borough Council chamber was packed with members of the public to hear the decision on the issue which has set Caversham against itself.

They split roughly into two groups:

the Mapledurham Playing Fields Action Group supporters, implacably opposed to any loss of the 22-acre recreation ground

supporters of The Heights Primary School who want to see the free school - currently running in temporary accommodation in Gosbrook Road in Caversham - find a permanent home in its Caversham Heights catchment area.

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Ward councillor Isobel Ballsdon revealed the level of division within the community.

She said: “It is worth councillors being aware that the opponents’ spearhead, the MPF Action Group, campaigned against my re-election this May because of my refusal to join their fight to prevent The Heights being allowed to go on Mapledurham Playing Fields.

“Although I stated plainly my open-mindedness to the potential opportunity and associated benefits that the EFA (then anticipated) formal proposal could bring to the MPF trust land and pavilion, I was re-elected with a healthy majority. This result clearly demonstrates that the MPF Action Group represents the views of just a small - but incredibly vocal - minority of residents.”

She pointed out the public consultation supported building on the Mapledurham Playing Fields against four other sites by 71 per cent.

At the beginning of the meeting councillors faced a remarkable 31 questions from the public many of them questioning the £30,000 sum offered for the value of the land when a previous valuation about 10 years ago had set the figure at around £600,000.

Head of legal and democratic services Chris Books explained the earlier valuation was for land for residential use and the current figure was for land that was open space.

Daniel Pagella from The Heights School trust pointed out the school was not “forced” on the area by the EFA, it had been bid for by the community.